Peacemaker Team Reservist disagrees.

Saturday 3rd November, 2001.

Archbishop declares ‘War against terrorism’ justified; Christian Peacemaker Team Reservist disagrees.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. George Carey, has just spoken about the war against terrorism, saying that it was justified. It is a serious claim for the Head of the Anglican Communion to make, thereby declaring this a ‘Just War’.

The Just(ifiable) War Tradition (JWT) has a long history, coming into existence in the 4th Century, after the Emperor Constantine had a religious experience. He co-opted the church, and used it to expand the empire, thus requiring Christians to participate in war. Prior to that time, the church was almost exclusively pacifist.

The teachings and lives of Jesus and his followers in the early church give no support for Christians to engage in warfare. His message was for people to love God, love their neighbours, and to love their enemies.

While the aims of the JWT are valid in seeking to limit the horror of war, in reality neither governments nor churches have ever really applied it. If they had, then there would have been consistent calls over the centuries from churches, for governments to stop going to war. Sadly, instead of this, churches carried out the crusades and the Spanish inquisition.

Government leaders including Tony Blair and George Bush, frequently state that there is a ‘just cause’; this was used in the crisis, and also in the current ‘War against terrorism’ However, a ‘Justifiable War’ has many other criteria related to the decision to go to war, and the means of war. These are pretty much unknown, or deliberately neglected, and governments’ frequently ignore them, preferring only to use the ‘just cause’ statement, seemingly to convince us that the war is just.

The criteria are :

Just Cause: – September 11 is clearly a just cause

Legitimate authority: – I have not checked the UN resolutions, nor whether the US President had authority to engage in these actions. Only this week has a vote been taken in parliament. The authority is therefore questionable.

Last resort – there are many other ways that bringing the perpetrators of September 11 to justice might have been done; in pursuing a ‘War against terrorism’ there are certainly many other methods. Having built a coalition which seems to be able to withstand military action, it presumably would have been even more ‘solid’ in bringing non-military actions against Bin Laden and the Taliban. Many major events of recent history (e.g. the ‘people power’ revolution in the Philippines, the Berlin Wall coming down, the transition in South Africa, and the revolution in Iran) were not predicted by analysts; some of them were the result of people acting justly in a non-violent manner, and waiting for an opportune time. It is impossible to accurately predict either success or failure of various actions. You can, however, learn from history. History shows that other options are available, and therefore this is not the last resort. Thus I do not believe that this criterion is met.

Proportionality – limited aims + means: – the current strategy and tactics certainly do not show evidence of being proportional to the threat, and neither the means nor the ends are limited. In using phrases such as ‘we must win, we will win’ George Bush shows clearly that he will use whatever it takes to defeat Bin Laden. That is not consistent with proportionality. Additionally, in the ‘war against terrorism’ there seems no limit to what is proposed, and as this is declared as a ‘long haul’ the means used will grow. Consequently I do not believe that this criterion is met.

Good intent: – the intentions of removing terrorism are good – but only if this is applied consistently. To remove terrorism from Afghanistan, while permitting other countries – including Israel – to engage in terrorism and assassination does not show good intent.

Probability of success: – it is highly improbable that the ‘war against terrorism’ will be won. Has the ‘War against Drugs’ or the ‘War against Crime’ ? In using the strategies and tactics that are being used, it is very likely that many more people will offer themselves as terrorists either to enact revenge or cause other conflicts. Regarding bringing Bin Laden to justice, it also seems improbable, as he may well not allow himself to be captured alive – and unless the re is a trial with him able to answer charges, then much of the world will not be satisfied that justice has been done. For these and other reasons, I do not believe that this criterion is met.

Discrimination – non-combatant immunity: – A century ago typical wars resulted in 90% combatant casualties, with only 10% non-combatant. Recently these figures have been reversed. Even with very accurate targeted bombing, many non-combatants will die as a direct consequence of military actions, and even more in the humanitarian disaster produced. In recent wars US and UK forces have shown a considerable reluctance to accept casualties, which has led to greater risks for non-combatants. The use of cluster bombs is hideous, and will almost inevitably target civilians. Consequently I do not believe that this criterion is met.

No glorying if successful : – this is related to ‘Good intent’, in that the Justifiable War response to success would be sorrow rather than elation. We must wait to see on this one.

For these reasons I do not believe that this is a Just War, and I do not believe that the Archbishop is correct in this matter.

Lets also remember that it was Gandhi who taught us that the ends we get are a product of the means we use; if we use violent means, we are likely to get violent ends. He also observed that it seemed only to be Christians who did not believe that Jesus was a pacifist.

I believe that the call to Christians – including Tony Blair and George Bush – is the call of Jesus, to love God, our neighbours, and our enemies.

David Cockburn spent 20 years designing weapon systems before studying for an MA in Peace Studies. He is currently the arms trade researcher for EIRIS, the Ethical Investment Research Service, while also engaged in active peacemaking in Israel – Palestine with Christian Peacemaker Teams. He has been a Christian for over 25 years.

David Cockburn, Christian Peacemaker Teams – UK

http://www.mepp-is-pa.fsnet.co.uk CPT Chicago Main Website http://www.cpt.org CPT Chicago Main e-mail address